The lost five years

 I was sick went to the hospital,,,,got well,,,,got sick again, rushed to hospital again, got  well again.  Forgot about blog, and here we are....again.

Now we've something to write/rant about again....namely the orange slime in our White House.   

Now if a genie could be  found and the genie granted us three wishes......what would we wish for?

Hmmmm

I Got Sick

I got sick, and with the help of others I'm better.

     Short story long, I haven't been taking care of my self, trying my damnest to punish it for my self imposed faults, foibles and failings.  I mean no matter how I try to justify it, smoking weed with COPD is seriously stupid.  I've watched most of my family die from COPD, I know what awaits me, but to try to hurry that?    Not to mention my drinking,,,,Wine, beer and spirits are wonderful things in moderation, but I haven't been moderating.  Drinking alcohol to lose time, is lazy, cowardly and fucking expensive.  Not quite as expensive as 11 days in the hospital,  but money better spent on needful things.

     Having been close to death has hopefully somehow changed me in a fundamental way.  I know my mind is clearer..I'm writing this blog entry after a lapse of a pair of years...the miasma of depression is lifting and I feel a smile radiating once more.   There is hope once again at Camp Massawomee.

Chile Chart Very Kool

http://www.appliancecity.co.uk/chilli/

Today I stand

     So many things going through my mind, many that I would be ashamed of if public.  Mainly mayhem in Washington.   I'm pretty sure I can keep a cap on it, but still I can not remain silent while a tyrant has taken control of the country I love.   I may have COPD, but I still breathe and having to breathe the same air that Trumpulthinskin breathes.  Sad.  Irritatingly I copy his syntax.  How long before the brown shirt bullies start to spill blood on the ground to assuage the ego of the nazi ensconced in our White House. And it will spill my friends, as surely and the sun will rise on an awakened America. I may not be able to march, but I can still speak up.  Resist America this pestilent blight upon the soul of our country.  

What?

iwnrtt
but it will be real


I worry about my sweet child
my beautiful grandkids

I'm bewildered

It was my generation that created this Dystopian reality.

Shame on us
Shame on me

in and out, you don't have to shout

All I know

is that I am me.

Everything else

a mystery

My body included.

Just ego

pure, unadulterated me

Yet I breathe

and every breath makes      me

so am I me

or my breath?

An Ode to Deacon Duvall

A month or so ago a man named Deacon Duvall died at the grand age of 97.  I didn't know Mr. Duvall, but I did know of him.   I was in the Navy when his Fairmont State football team won the national championship of the NAIA.  I didn't see any of the games, but i earnestly followed the team in the Times/West Virginian newspaper my mom and dad subscribed to for me. I had played against Roy Michael and Sonny Bardic in high school so I knew first hand what Fairmont State's  opponents were facing.   I admired that team and their coach Deacon.   Never met the man, even though I started Fairmont State his last year as coach.  Years pass,   Roy Michael is Mannington's coach, then North Marion's.  Roy had a great teacher in Deacon and I'm sure Deacon was proud of Roy.  

I read, as many did, Deacon's obituary and it mentioned his book, published in 2008,," Duvall Football: Winning a National Championship ".  My immediate thought was to read his book and like always I Amazoned.  Ordered the book and waited.   Yesterday I got a notice from the bookseller that he couldn't find the book.   Okay I think,,I know I can go elsewhere for the book.  I cancel that order and get back to Amazon and what do I find???  They don't have the book at all.  I'm so used to having any book I want on my doorstep within a week,  I'm taken aback.

But I must say, as a Camp Massawomeean, I had a plan b.     

I pulled the Mannington Library up and Lo:  Not Found

Know that the Mangton Library net site is part of the Marion Co. system which includes Fairmont State University.  I called the Mannington Library and they were.......Let's say I came up with Zilch.

So I called North Marion High School Library and asked them if they had a copy of a book which had to do with their retired teacher/coach.    If I could congeal the reply of the librarian at North Marion down to it's essense it would be " Roy who? "  

Non-plussed I dialed FSU Library and finally talked to their reference librarian.

She told me that Deacon's book is only in three libraries.   The closest was WVU.

I have no idea of the literary merits of Deacon Duvall's book, having never read it.  But damnit,,,why isn't it at North Marion, and why isn't it at Fairmont State, indeed, why isn't it enshrined at Fairmont State.....  But

This isn't about a man I haven't met.  It's about his wife Joan.

After all my blind alleys, and Plan C*.

I reread the obit, saw that his daughter was local, and I called and left a message for her or her husband.

A couple of hours ago the phone rings and it's Deacon's wife Joan. If I could remember exactly the conversation because she was the most gracious, self-effacing, kindly person I ever talked to.

Upshot:;    She's sending me two (2) "Duvall Football:  Winning a National Championship"

I'm to donate some money to the First Baptist Church Deacon Duvall Memorial Fund.   Joan wouldn't pin me to a certain amount,,,,just "some".   

I didn't know Deacon Duvall,,,but I know for sure he married one classy lady.

*I was going to call John Veasey at the newspaper.

A Proper Loaf of Bread

My latest effort, my latest love.  Ain't she a beaut?

10/6 ration of flour to water, 1/2 tsp Salt, 2 tsp of honey,  tsp of yeast and a cup of Sourdough starter.  35 minutes at 400 degrees,   Wasn't sleepy, so I stayed up all night and this was out of the oven around 5 a.m.  The first slice slathered with cultured butter was just delicioso.  Can't imagine what my bread is gonna taste like when I get good.  Still a little underdone in the very middle.  Crust is seriously chewy, but the inside is airy and with a bright bread taste.  I tried to emulate a crust design I saw in one of my bread books.   Didn't use a razor, but just a french cooking knife, that I had sharpened with my new knife sharpening kit from Smith's.  

Bread Recipe

With my crappy lungs, I'm just not able to knead bread dough for the 15 or so minutes needed to get the results I like, so I bought an Zojiroshii machine.   Kudos to the people who designed and manufactured it.  It makes a one pound loaf which is just right for me, living alone as I do.  This is the recipe I've used for years and it makes great bread.....crustly/fluffy and a snap to make.

10 oz.                 bread flour
 6  oz.                 water
 1  tsp.                active dry yeast
1/2 tsp                salt
1/2 tsp.               diastatic malt powder
1+1/2 TBSP       honey

Oven 375   for 35-40 minutes

Cool 30 minutes before slicing and enjoying.

I'm working on a new Massawomee sourdough starter culture so hopefully more to follow.

Bread of the Day

Can anyone identify the characters in the photo of today's bread?

Working on some sourdough, but this will do till then.   Today was a grill day with Ben and Jerry and Co.   Reconstructed Chicken Cordon Bleu with Grilled Nectarines and a simple salad.  And very cheap beer.  Was still wonderful.

The real reason for Christmas



The days are getting longer,,

Fa, la, la, la,
                   
                        la.

   la,  la,

                la,

                          la.

Again friends

Once again my friends come to the rescue.  Ben Fridley showed up yesterday and repaired the badly rotted roof  over my laundry room and then Stacie showed up and the two of them removed the Kissyface besotted carpet from my living room.  Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.

Friends

I want to thank Stacie and Ben Fridley.  They spent the last four/five hours cleaning out my big room downstairs.  They are going to take out the carpet that Kissyface marked as her own.   Kissy is gone and soon the carpet will be too.  My friends complete me.

Eating Pi

Pi or the ratio of the diameter of a circle to it's circumference is a very naughty number.  I'm surprised as anyone at this disclosure.  Pi....it's just a number,,,,how could a number be naughty?  Well it's like this.   Pi is an irrational number that by definition goes on forever without stopping or repeating. So it contains by definition every finite number sequence.  Objects that are copyrighted, books and songs, etc.  can't be duplicated without permission,,it's against the law. So some where inside number pi is everything ever written, and since songs can be represented digitally, every song ever written is somewhere inside pi.  So these number sequences are illegal.  Images can be represented digitally, ergo:  Every painting, photograph, indeed every movie ever made,,,,is inside pi.  Pi itself isn't copyrighted,,,but parts of it are...Oh yes they will fine you and throw you in jail for writing down those numbers and disseminating them.

Pi you are a very naughty number,,,,,I think I make Pi and eat the whole damn thing,,,Without the evidence how can the number police prosecute?.....

Strong is the Force

Older getting we are
before all is gone,
memories, hopes, and love
leave no, I wish I hads.


Short of breathe

hurts nothing and all

play the cards you got

but remember

no one gets out

alive

What just happened?

http://ht.ly/fv5qk    Why I like Nadia G

Maryland Terps vs. the Mountaineers

Add the above skillet contents to a grilled hot Italian sausage, and grilled pineapple that was coated with brown sugar, put it on a hoagie bun and enjoy the beatdown the Mounties gave the Terrapins this past Saturday.

What did you have for half-time break in the game?

I'm beginning to get the hang of taking snaps with my tablet, so look out.

Observations

Not having written in a long time I've had a lot to think about.  Reading, on the net, and watching television my mind had finally gotten saturated with minutia and I must regurgitate some to make room for more.

Most of my reader know I love to cook and watch the food channel and cooking network far too much.  On twitter I'm following  many of the food network talking heads and enjoy it.  I don't remember when I began to follow Alton Brown,  don't really remember any of his tweets, but this morning I was browsing Wired magazine "net version".. and came upon an article about Alton.  http://www.wired.com/design/2012/09/alton-brown-twitter-doodle/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+wired%2Findex+%28Wired%3A+Top+Stories%29&pid=992     Now if you will indulge me and  look at the post-it notes.  Am I mistaken, but doesn't Alton's self portraits look a lot like Calvin.  I always knew that the reason Gary Larson stopped drawing was because Calvin had grown up and became Alton.  Mystery though is what ever became of Hobbes?

Roasted, Braised, or Stew,
Tiger tastes of glue.


And now a "Fire Devil"
http://www.treehugger.com/natural-sciences/tornado-brush-fire-fire-devil-video.html


While on the subject of atmospheric phenomenon, this is a picture taken from the porch of Camp Massawomee one Saturday not too long ago.  It's what is called a "Sun dog".

Supercell

This is what a Supercell Thunderstorm looks like twitter.com/TwistedSifter/…
— Ben Matthew Wong (@TwistedSifter) June 19, 2012

I be gettin outta the way when I sees this baby coming my way.  Unless I haven't showered in a couple of years.

It's been a day and change since cold turkey Facebook style and I'm still alive.  Lots of sun, completed two ferocious New York Times Xword puzzles, read about 15 pages of Lisa Randall's newest book and cleaned out the cupboard on the front porch.  Scented the tomatoes with Miracle-Gro and watched a zillion insects do a honeybee's job of passing pollen.  From wasps to Flys, moths to sweat bees, and a bunch of insects I had no idea existed.  I don't think the lack of honeybees is going to put a dent in plants making viable seed for the next growth cycle.  Only difference is....no honey.
     I missed the transit of Venus across the Sun.  but it was a..mostly cloudy....b...much better view on the internet....c..I'm really lazy when it comes to observing  celestial events.  I've got a pretty nice pair of binoculars. I laid out on the pool deck one night soon after their purchase, determined to see our one of our nearest galactic neighbors...The Andromeda Galaxy,   you know the one that's going to smash into us eventually. (don't sell the farm just yet) and after about half an hour of my eyes adjusting to the dark and with my arms straining at the sinews with  holding the binoculars vertical for twenty minutes straight...lo and behold,,the Andromeda Galaxy, our twin sister.  The picture is provided by NASA.